Karlskirche
Karlskirche | ||
---|---|---|
Year consecrated 1737 | | |
Status | Active | |
Location | ||
Location | Vienna, Austria | |
Geographic coordinates | 48°11′53.81″N 16°22′18.84″E / 48.1982806°N 16.3719000°E | |
Architecture | ||
Architect(s) | Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach | |
Type | Church | |
Style | Baroque, Rococo | |
Groundbreaking | 1716 | |
Completed | 1737 | |
Specifications | ||
Direction of façade | NNW | |
Length | 55 m (180.4 ft) | |
Width | 40 m (131.2 ft) | |
Dome(s) | 1 | |
Dome height (outer) | 70 m (229.7 ft) | |
Website | ||
www |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Ko%C5%9Bci%C3%B3%C5%82_%C5%9Bw._Karola_w_Wiedniu_-_sklepienie.jpg/220px-Ko%C5%9Bci%C3%B3%C5%82_%C5%9Bw._Karola_w_Wiedniu_-_sklepienie.jpg)
The Rektoratskirche St. Karl Borromäus, commonly called the Karlskirche (German for 'St. Charles Church'),[1] is a Baroque church located on the south side of Karlsplatz in Vienna, Austria. Widely considered the most outstanding baroque church in Vienna, as well as one of the city's greatest buildings, the church is dedicated to Saint Charles Borromeo, one of the great counter-reformers of the sixteenth century.[2]
Located just outside of Innere Stadt in Wieden, approximately 200 metres outside the Ringstraße, the church contains a dome in the form of an elongated ellipsoid.
History
In 1713, one year after the last great
As a creator of historic architecture, the elder Fischer von Erlach united the most diverse of elements. The façade in the centre, which leads to the porch, corresponds to a
Next to the Church was the Spitaler Gottesacker. The composer Antonio Vivaldi died in Vienna and was buried there on July 28, 1741, but his tomb has been lost over time. The church hosts regular Vivaldi concerts in his honour.[3]
Hedwig Kiesler (age 19), later American movie actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr, married Friedrich Mandl (age 32), businessman and Austrofascist, in the tiny chapel of this elaborate church on 10 August 1933. With over 200 prominent guests attending, Kiesler wore "a black-and-white print dress" and carried "a bouquet of white orchids."[4]
Since Karlsplatz was restored as an ensemble in the late 1980s, the church has garnered fame because of its dome and its two flanking columns of
Iconography
The iconographical program of the church originated from the imperial official Carl Gustav Heraeus and connects Saint Charles Borromeo with his imperial benefactor. The relief on the pediment above the entrance with the cardinal virtues and the figure of the patron on its apex point to the motivation of the donation. This sculpture group continues onto the attic story as well. The attic is also one of the elements which the younger Fischer introduced. The columns display scenes from the life of Charles Borromeo in a spiral relief and are intended to recall the two columns, Boaz and Jachim, that stood in front of the Temple at Jerusalem. They also recall the Pillars of Hercules and act as symbols of imperial power. The entrance is flanked by angels from the Old and New Testaments.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Adolf_Hitler_-_Die_Karlskirche_im_Winter_%281912%29.jpg/220px-Adolf_Hitler_-_Die_Karlskirche_im_Winter_%281912%29.jpg)
This program continues in the interior as well, above all in the dome
The high
As strong effect emanates from the directing of light and architectural grouping, in particular the arch openings of the main axis. The color scheme is characterized by marble with sparring and conscious use of gold leaf. The large round glass window high above the main altar with the Hebrew Tetragrammaton/Yahweh symbolizes God's omnipotence and simultaneously, through its warm yellow tone, God's love. Below is a representation of Apotheosis of Saint Charles Borromeo.
Next to the structures at Schönbrunn Palace, which maintain this form but are more fragmented, the church is Fischer's greatest work. It is also an expression of the Austrian joie de vivre stemming from the victorious end of the Turkish Wars.
Pulpit
The pulpit of the church was probably designed by Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach, and his plans might have been executed by a French furniture maker, Claude Le Fort du Plessy in 1735 although there are no surviving documents attesting their authorship or the manufacturing of the church furniture.[5] It is a wooden structure with rich floral, vegetal, rosette and rocaille ornaments, the finer carvings made of hard walnut, in a gold and brown colour scheme. The abat-voix forms a theatrical canopy with two putti holding a cross and a chalice with host; there is a flaming urn on the top. Around 1860 the abat-voix was enlarged. A wide rim was added distorting the original proportions, obscuring the elegant, swirling lines and creating a top-heavy effect. In 2006-2007 this rim was removed after a long debate and the pulpit was restored. The missing carvings of the canopy decorations were reconstructed and the original appearance of the structure was re-established.[6]
Gallery
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Night view of the church
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Column with spiral narrative as on Trajan's Column
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Top of one of the two towers
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High Altar, Apotheosis of Saint Charles Borromeo, by Alberto Camesina
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Saints Jerome and Augustine, High Altar, by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach
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The gold piece high above the altar symbolizing Yahweh
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Closer view of the dome
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Intercession of Charles Borromeo supported by the Virgin Mary by Rottmayr
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Organ loft
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The restored canopy of the abat-voix
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Huge reflecting ball inside the church
See also
References
- Citations
- ^ "St. Charles Church". VIENNA – Now. Forever. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ Brook 2012, pp. 146–147.
- ^ "Concerts in Vienna". www.concert-vienna.info. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ The book "Beautiful", p. 39, by Stephen Michael Shearer.
- ^ Marek Pučalík: "Ihr sehet nehmlich einen Templ, desgleichen ihr vielleicht selten, oder vielleicht niemals gesehen." Zur Ikonographie der Wiener Karlskirche, in: Orbis artium. K jubileu Lubomíra Slavíčka, Brno, Masarykova univerzita, 2009, p. 566
- ^ Verein Karskirche, Nachrichten, Ausgabe 4, Jänner 2007
- Bibliography
- Brook, Stephan (2012). DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Vienna. London: Dorling Kindersley Ltd. ISBN 978-0756684280.
- Charpentrat, Pierre (1967). Living Architecture: Baroque. Oldbourne. p. 91. OCLC 59920343.
- Clark, Roger (1985). Precedents in Architecture. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold. pp. 165, 208. ISBN 0-442-21668-8.
- Gaillemin, Jean-Louis (1994). Knopf Guides: Vienna. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0679750680.
- Meth-Cohn, Delia (1993). Vienna: Art and History. Florence: Summerfield Press. ASIN B000NQLZ5K.
- Schnorr, Lina (2012). Imperial Vienna. Vienna: HB Medienvertrieb GesmbH. ISBN 978-3950239690.
- Schulte-Peevers, Andrea (2007). Alison Coupe (ed.). Michelin Green Guide Austria. London: Michelin Travel & Lifestyle. ISBN 978-2067123250.
- Trachtenberg, Marvin; Hyman, Isabelle (1986). Architecture: From Prehistory to Post-Modernism. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. pp. 370–371. ISBN 0-13-044702-1.
- Unterreiner, Katrin; Gredler, Willfried (2009). The Hofburg. Vienna: Pichler Verlag. ISBN 978-3854314912.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Official website
- St Charles at Sacred Destinations
- Great Buildings